Groundwork

Food and drink · Small-town market · Indiana

Coffee shops and cafes in the Washington, IN area

How the Washington, IN area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 79 out of 100: High

Ranked #12 of 529 scored small-town markets
#3 of 23 scored small-town markets based in Indiana

Listings
5
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
5
All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Household spending a year
$43M
On food away from home · $3,638 a household
Spending per listing
$8.6M
2.3 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
4.2
62% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
34,209
+2.5% since 2020

See the coffee shops and cafes around any address in the Washington area

The site report maps the coffee shops and cafes on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Washington area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

The Washington area scores 79 (high) on the Groundwork market score for coffee shops and cafes, ranking #12 of 529 scored small-town markets and #3 of 23 scored small-town markets based in Indiana. That puts it in the top 10% of small-town markets for coffee shops and cafes.

As of September 2026, map listings count 5 coffee shops and cafes in the Washington area. None of them are chain locations, against 39% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 4.2, 62% below the U.S. rate of 11.0.

At $3,638 per household (11% below the U.S. average), households in the Washington area spend about $43M a year on food away from home. Spread across 5 coffee shops and cafes, that is $8.6M per cafe, 2.3 times the U.S. figure of $3.7M. That spending covers all food away from home, which coffee shops and cafes share with other businesses in the trade.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in the Washington area was 5 in 2023. That is one for every 2,363 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S. The official count takes in all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes: bakeries and dessert shops are counted too. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $1.8M has gone to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in the Washington area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Washington area grew 2.5%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Washington area compares

The same measures for Indiana and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the coffee shops and cafes counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Coffee shops and cafes in Washington, IN area compared with Indiana and the U.S.
MeasureWashington areaIndianaU.S.
Listings per 10k households4.28.011.0
Spending per listing$8.6M$4.8M$3.7M
Households per official establishment (all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars)2,3632,1251,518
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+40.8%+24.3%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.5%+2.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,638$3,802$4,070
Median household income$68,503$71,957$80,734
Groundwork market score7970

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
5All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars
Employees, 2023
72
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
50 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
12The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$1.8M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in the Washington area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3. These official figures cover all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, not only coffee shops and cafes.

Population and households in the Washington area

Population, 2025 estimate
34,209+2.5% since 2020
Households
11,814
Median age
35.8
Homes lived in by their owners
72%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
430 sq. mi.
People per square mile
78
Median household income
$68,503+27.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$86,976
Median home value
$197,200
Jobs located here
12,604
Daytime population
31,688Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Washington area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the coffee shops and cafes on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Washington area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Coffee shops and cafes across Indiana

Every Indiana market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Indiana for coffee shops and cafes, numbered among those based in Indiana, with the Washington area marked.

Top small-town markets in Indiana

Small-town markets in Indiana ranked for coffee shops and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Greencastle, IN8685.7$6.7M+3.2%#2 of 529
2Bedford, IN8384.2$8.5M+1.2%#5 of 529
3Washington, IN7954.2$8.6M+2.5%#12 of 529
4Jasper, IN74169.1$4.3M+0.9%#35 of 529
5Seymour, IN72126.6$5.6M+1.9%#43 of 529
6Crawfordsville, IN7163.8$9.6M+2.7%#50 of 529
7New Castle, IN7173.8$9.1M+0.5%#51 of 529
8Kendallville, IN71158.3$4.4M+1.0%#55 of 529
9Auburn, IN68158.8$4.2M+2.9%#74 of 529
10Plymouth, IN65147.9$4.6M+1.2%#103 of 529

Other business types in the Washington area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many coffee shops and cafes are in the Washington, IN area?

The Washington area has 5 coffee shops and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations. The listings count coffee, tea, juice and bubble tea shops, and cafes. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars in 2023. That count covers all snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars (bakeries and dessert shops included), not only coffee shops and cafes.

How much do households in the Washington, IN area spend on food away from home?

About $43M a year, or $3,638 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 coffee shops and cafes on map listings, it comes to $8.6M per cafe. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only coffee shops and cafes. It is estimated from the incomes of the 11,814 households in the Washington area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Washington, IN area compare with the U.S. for coffee shops and cafes?

The Washington area has 4.2 coffee shops and cafes per 10,000 households, 62% below the U.S. rate of 11.0. Spending per cafe is $8.6M, 2.3 times the U.S. figure of $3.7M. At the national ratio of coffee shops and cafes to household spending, the Washington area would have about 12, against 5 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,363 households, against one for every 1,518 across the U.S.

How fast is the Washington, IN area growing?

Population estimates put the Washington area at 34,209 people in 2025, up 2.5% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 11,814 households. The median household income in the Washington area is $68,503 a year, 15% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 27.7% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Washington area scores 79 for coffee shops and cafes (high), #12 of 529 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Washington area. It maps the coffee shops and cafes on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for coffee shops and cafes · All 56 business types in the Washington area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Washington area?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of the Washington area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.